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For cities to be sustainable, they need to simultaneously address the vulnerability of people, places and sectors that may be affected by a changing climate; mitigate their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions; and ensure adequate access to basic urban services such as water, food and energy to their growing populations.
There is growing recognition of urban and peri-urban agriculture and forestry as an important strategy for climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction. Experiences in Sri Lanka and Argentina have shown that urban agriculture can help reduce the vulnerability of the urban poor and address climate change at the same time. The experiences in Sri Lanka and Argentina provide a first set of monitoring data and have informed the development of an appropriate and applicable monitoring framework. The authors discuss that the local application of this methodology elsewhere could be effectively used to:
develop GHG emission reduction plans, taking into account urban agriculture alongside other interventions;
develop local food system strategies;
integrate agriculture in urban planning as an appropriate use for vulnerable sites and a viable response to climate change effects;
enhance awareness among citizens, the private sector and policy-makers on urban agriculture and climate change; and
obtain national and international support and funding for adaptation measures involving urban and peri-urban agriculture.
